JAGATSINGHPUR: The Jagatsinghpur administration on Monday demolished 10 houses which were reportedly built illegally on government land to accommodate nearly 30 suspected Bangladeshi nationals in a village under Raghunathpur block.
While 13 suspected infiltrators have been detained, two women were arrested by the police for harbouring the illegal settlers.
The demolition drive was conducted at Behram slum under Tarikunda panchayat a day after illegal Bangladeshi settlers allegedly attacked a police team, leaving three cops including a woman constable injured. Following the attack, police have detained 13 suspected Bangladeshi nationals and are interrogating them to verify their nationality.
SP Ankit Verma said police have detained 13 persons and verification of their identity is underway. Some have reportedly admitted to being Bangladeshi nationals, while others failed to produce valid identity documents, land-related papers or proof of residence.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Director General of Police YB Khurania lauded the police and district administration for the successful operation to identify illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators.
On Sunday evening, acting on a tip-off about presence of Bangladeshi infiltrators, Jagatsinghpur police led by additional SP Satyabrat Dash raided the slum. During the raid, a scuffle ensued between police and the illegal settlers. While Dash and two police personnel including a woman constable suffered injuries, 10 Bangladeshi nationals managed to flee the spot.
As tension flared up, the district administration deployed three platoons of police force in the area. Later in the night, police seized a country-made revolver, 10 sharp weapons including swords and machetes hidden inside the kitchen and bathroom of a house.
During inquiry, it was found one Sikandar Alam (40) had illegally occupied government land four to five years ago and constructed 10 asbestos houses on it. Nearly 30 suspected Bangladeshi nationals were staying in these houses. At the time of the raid, police said, 18 illegal settlers fled while 12 were present in the houses.
Three suspected Bangladeshi nationals were detained on Sunday night and another 10 were taken into police custody for questioning on Monday.
Show-cause notices to field staff, says collector
During verification, the suspects produced Aadhaar cards purportedly issued from West Bengal, which were found to be fake. Their statements also raised suspicion about their activities and identity.
Further investigation revealed that Alam had grabbed government land with the knowledge of some revenue officials. Even TPCODL staff had provided electricity connection to the illegal settlement by installing meters.
Subsequently on Monday, the administration demolished the 10 illegal houses in the presence of magistrate and sub-collector Prasanta Kumar Tarai with the help of a bulldozer.
Jagatsinghpur collector J Sonal said the administration has issued show-cause notices to field staff of the departments concerned and initiated an inquiry into the negligence that allowed encroachment on government land. A special team has been formed to nab the other suspects who are on the run after the scuffle with police.